Edwin Harold "Teddy" Flack (5 November 1873 – 10 January 1935) was an Australian athlete and tennis player. He was Australia's first Olympian, being its only representative in 1896, and the first Olympic champion in the 800 metres and the 1500 metres running events.[1][2]

From 1892 to 1894, Flack was active in middle distance and distance running in amateur athletics in the then colony of Victoria, competing with the Melburnian Hare & Hounds athletics club.[4]

In October 1892 he placed third in the inaugural Victorian 10 mile cross country championship, held at Oakleigh (Park) Racecourse, in a time of 1:02.42.0.[5]

On 9 to 11 November 1893, an intercolonial meet described as the "Australasian Championships" was held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, between athletes from the British Colonies that were later to form the nations of Australia and New Zealand. This was the second such meet, the first having been held at Moore Park in Sydney on 31 May 1890.[6] Flack competed in the 1893 event and won the mile championship in a time of 4:44.0, with a winning margin of two yards. He also competed in the 880 yards (won by Ken McCrae of New South Wales in 2:06.8) and three miles championship (won by Charles Herbert of Victoria in 15:33.6), but was unplaced in both events.[7] By virtue of his win in the mile event he was also awarded the Victorian 1893 mile championship title and, on 30 September 1893, was third in the Victorian 10 mile cross country championship in a time of 1:05.21.[8]

On 15 December 1894 he won both the 880yards (2:07.2) and mile (4:49.4) Victorian 1894 championships and, earlier in the year, on 22 September 1894 was 2nd in the 10 mile cross country championship (1:00.02).[9] The 1894 event was Flack's last appearance in the Victorian Championships.

At the age of 21 Flack was sent to London to receive further training as an accountant with the firm Price, Waterhouse & Co (now PricewaterhouseCoopers). A keen athlete in Victoria, Flack joined the London Athletic Club and was intent on attending the coming inaugural Olympics while in the city of New York.

1896 Olympics

Edwin Flack

Flack reached Athens after an uncomfortable six-day rail and sea trip, during which he was plagued with sea sickness. On the opening day of the Games he won his first race, the first heat of the 800 metres run, finishing in a time of 2 min 10.0 sec. On the second day he lined up against the American favourite, Arthur Blake, in the 1500 metres run. Running shoulder to shoulder with Blake in the final straight, Flack powered ahead near the end to win by more than five metres in a time of 4:33.2. On the fourth day of the Games Flack earned his second first-place medal, winning the 800 metres in 2 min 11.0 sec.

It may be noted that, even by the standards of the time, the times required to win the 800m and 1,500m at the first Olympics were slow. Although there was no official world record in that era, by way of comparison the local 880 yards (804.67m) championship in Flack's home colony of Victoria was won that year in 2:04.4[10] and the previous year (1895) in 2:03.4.[11] At the Australasian Championships of 1896, the mile (1,609m) was won by New Zealander W Bennett in a time of 4:28.6[12] - some 4.6s quicker than Flack's Olympic 1,500m time, despite running 109 metres further.

Just a day later Flack tried for a treble, in the marathon, even though he had never run a race more than 10 miles, less than half the marathon distance. He was in second place behind FrenchmanAlbin Lermusiaux, bronze medallist in the 1500 m run which Flack already has beaten, for much of the race. After 32 kilometres, the Frenchman dropped out and Flack was left in the lead. But with just three kilometres to go, Flack suddenly collapsed. He was so delirious that, when a Greek spectator tried to help him, Flack punched him to the ground. Flack was removed from the course and tended to by Prince Nicholas.

Flack was a popular competitor at the 1896 games, and was commonly referred to as the "Lion of Athens". As the Australian colonies had not yet federated, there was no national anthem or uniform. As such, Flack competed in his Melbourne Grammar School colours.[1]

Legacy

Flack is commemorated by a bronze statue on the median strip of High St, Berwick,[1] which was unveiled in 1998 by former running great and later Governor of Victoria, John Landy. The former Berwick Recreational Reserve was renamed Edwin Flack Reserve in 1996 to honour the town's first Olympic hero and medal winner,[13] and includes several sporting grounds including an athletics track, an Australian rules football oval, netball courts and soccer pitch. Melbourne Grammar School's sporting complex at Port Melbourne has been named Edwin Flack Park in honour of their past student.[14]